Charlotte Regional Realtor Association: Area home sales up 40 percent in January

CHARLOTTE – Charlotte-area home sales jumped 40 percent in January compared to the same period in 2012, while sale prices remained fairly level, the Charlotte Regional Realtor Association said Thursday.

In January, there were 2,163 closings, up from 1,541 in January 2012. Average home prices last month in the Charlotte metropolitan area were $189,007, up just 0.6 percent from January 2012, when the average sale price was $187,803.

The CRRA also said that from January 2012 to January 2013 in the Charlotte area:

The median sale price was $150,000, up 2.6 percent from the January 2012 median price of $146,200.

The average list price increased 2.6 percent, from $252,586 to $246,197.

New residential listings remained nearly the same at 3,838, a decrease of 1.3 percent from January 2012.

Inventory fell 29.4 percent compared to January 2012, leaving the Carolina Multiple Listing Service region with a 5-month supply of homes for sale.

Foreclosures and short sales continued to fall. Distressed properties accounted for only 11.1 percent of new listings compared with 14.4 percent in January 2012.

18.1 percent of all closed sales in January 2013 were distressed, which is down from 21 percent in January 2012.

The average number of days a property was on the market from the time it was listed until it closed was 155 days, which is a decrease of 10 days compared to January 2012.